Albertus Swanepoel

South African born Albertus Swanepoel has been a force in millinery for quite some time. After graduating as a Graphic designer, Mr. Swanepoel began his career in fashion under his Quartus Manna label in the 1980’s in Johannesburg, South Africa. After he won the Coty Award as top designer in the country in 1987 he left for NYC in 1989 where he trained as a milliner under Janine Galimard at FIT. In 2004 he was asked to make the hats for the Marc by Marc Jacobs FW2005 show. His current list of runway clients include Alexander Wang, Proenza Schouler, Carolina Herrera, Bill Blass, Cushnie et Ochs, Narciso Rodriquez, Ohne Titel, Suno, Tommy Hilfiger, Perry Ellis, Billy Reid, Peter Som and several more. His work has been featured in most international fashion magazines. Two of his hats were part of the “Hats, an Anthology” an exhibition by curated by Stephen Jones. This exhibition started at the Victoria and Albert Museum and then traveled worldwide. The highlight of his career in New York was receiving the coveted first runner up Award in the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund Competition in 2008. He still lives in New York City, collaborating with some of the best designers in the industry and continues to produce collections under his namesake label.